Loose-leaf book



June 30, 1925. 1,543,879

J. SCHADE LOOSE LEAF BOOK Filed Oct. 11, 1924 Patented June 30, 1925.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFIOE,

JOHN SCHADE, OF HOLYOKE, IVIASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO NATIONAL BLANK BOOK COMPANY, OF HOLYOKE, MASSACHUSETTS, A VOLUNTARY TRUST ASSO- CIATION OF COPARTNERSHIP, F. B. TOWNE, E. S. TOWNE, J. M. TOWNE, AND F. W.

WILSON, TRUSTEES.

LOOSE-LEAF BOOK.

Application filed October 11, 1924-.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, J OHN SCHADE, a citizen of the United States, residing at the city of Holyoke, in the county of I-Iampden and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Loose- Leaf Books; and I do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to loose leaf books, but more particularly has reference to that style of books in which the post members are elongated link-like structures which are inserted through perforations in the sheets, these links being hinged at their ends to pintle carrying strips slidably housed within the inner edges of the book covers, so that when the covers are opened the links will appear as bridging the inside of the book back. I I

This style of loose leaf book is not new, but in prior structures, the back has been made of some stout material, as heavy leather or pressed cardboard that had to be properly shaped, and the side covers were connected to the edges of the back by leather so as to provide for the ready opening and closing of the covers. Moreover, in such prior structures the only metal hinges provided were those between the posts and the side covers, and the freeing of the posts could only be effected by opening the covers and manipulating an element inside the book.

In my invention, the back is made of metal while the covers are hinged to the back by the same pintle strips that hinge the posts, and the latter are released by the ready manipulation of a finger piece on the pintle strip outside the book.

When finger pieces or analogous devices are contained within the book they will bear against the sheets when the covers are closed thus indenting and frequently mutilating said sheets.

The above novel features of my invention provide a particularly rugged structure, and the latter has an exceptionally good appearance and is economical to manufacture.

In the accompanying drawings Figure 1 is an inside view of my book Serial No. 742,985.

with the covers broken away and the housing for one of the pintle strips sectioned horizontally.

Figure 2 is a similar view with one of the pintle strips pulled out to release one end of the posts and the latter thrown back in position to receive sheets or to allow them to be withdrawn.

Figures 3 and 4 are sections respectively at the lines 38 and l4l of Figure 1, and

Figure 5 is a detail perspective of one of the posts.

Similar numerals of reference denote like parts in the several figures of the drawing.

1 is the back of the book which is made of metal and is preferably fashioned in the conventional concavo-convex shape. Secured to the opposite edges of this back, preferably at two locations, are metal hinge eyes 2, and although these eyes may be integral with these edges, I prefer to make them separate in order to economize in metal.

Secured to the inner edges of the covers 3 are metal housings 4 within which are slidably disposed the pintle strips 5, and as these strips are precisely alike both as to construction and operation, the present description will be limited to only one of them.

The posts 6 are preferably three in number, and each one is elongated, so as to hold a considerable number of loose sheets, and have pintle openings 7 extending through the ends.

The housings 4- are cut away to form recesses 8 and. 9, the cut away portions 8 accommodating the posts so that the ends of the latter may be inserted therein with their openings 7 in line with their respective pintles 10, 11, and 12, that are integral with the strip 5, and it will be readily seen, by reference to Figure 2, that when the posts are swung down their free ends will come within these cut away portions or recesses 8, so that when the strip carrying said pintles is pushed inwardly said pintles will be inserted through the eyes in said free ends and thereby complete the hinging of the posts.

The cut away portions 9 accommodate the hinge eyes 2 at the edges of the back 1, so that said eyes may be located within said portions in line with the pintles 12 and 13 carried by the strip, and at this point attention is called to the fact that all the pintles of each strip are in alinement.

From the foregoing it will be evident that the inner parts of the housings cut away to form recesses as described, form complementary hinge eye elements the other hinge ele ments consisting of the hinge eyes of the metal back and the perforated ends of the posts, and it furthermore will be evident that these complementary hinge elements are partly and permanently engaged with said hinge eyes and partly and releasably engaged with the posts.

In order that it may be clearly understood how the pintles 12 and 13 are inserted through the eyes 2, I would state that, in assembling my improved book, the strip is first inserted through the housing 4 until the end of the pintle 12 is on the point of entering the further cut away portion 9, whereupon one eye 2 is located within said portion and the strip then pushed so as to cause this pintle 12 to be inserted through this eye, this pushing of the strip being continued until the pintle 13 has passed beyond the other portion 9, whereupon the remaining eye 2 is located within this portion 9 and the strip retracted until this pintle 13 has passed completely through said eye, and the end of the strip is then bent upwardly at a right angle to form a finger hold it which will also act as a stop to prevent undue inward movement of the strip, and when this hinge eye 2 and the pintle 13 are in the relative position just described, the pintles 10, 11, and 12, will be in a position bridging the cut away portions 8.

In View of the above explanation it will be clear that when the strip is withdrawn, as is shown in one instance at Figure 2, the pintles 10, 11, and 12, will be withdrawn from these portions 8, thus leaving these portions free to accommodate the ends of the posts, and when the latter are housed within these portions these pintles 10, 11, and 12, when the strip is pushed inwardly, will complete the hinging of these eyes.

It will be noted from an inspection of Figure 2, that the strip can be retracted only far enough to admit the posts within the portions 8, owing to the abutment of a shoulder 15 at the base of the pintle 13, so that it is merely necessary to pull out the strip as far as it will go in order to leave the cut away portions 8 clear.

\Vhat is claimed is 1. A loose leaf book comprising a metal back having hinge eyes at its edges, covers having housings secured to their inner edges, the latter having recesses at a plurality of locations, strips slidable within said housings and carrying pintles that are in alinement with said recesses, a predetermined number of the latter containing said eyes which are permanently engaged by certain of said pintles whereby said covers and back are permanently hinged together, and loose leaf posts having perforated ends and extending within the remaining recesses and removably retained therein by certain of said pintles which are inserted through said ends.

2. A loose leaf book comprising a metal back carrying hinge eyes, covers having metal housings secured to their inner edges, the inner portions of said housings formed into hinge eye elements, loose leaf posts having hinge eyes at each end, and a single pintle carrying strip slidable in each housing, the eyes of said metal back and posts and the eyes in the housings being comple mentary and interengaged, and the pintles carried by the strips being permanently located within the eyes carried by the metal back, but releasably connected with the eyes at the ends of the posts.

3. A loose leaf book, comprising a metal back having hinge eyes at its edges, covers having housings secured to their inner edges, a metal strip slidable in each housing and carrying alined pintles that are located at the inner part of said housings, recesses in the inner edges of said housings at predetermined locations whereby hinge elements are formed, and loose leaf posts having hinge eyes at their ends, the hinge eyes of the metal back being permanently engaged by certain of said pintles while the hinge eyes of the posts are releasably engaged by certain of the pintles.

4. A loose leaf book as in claim 3, further distinguished in that a stop is provided to limit the outward movements of said strips, while a finger piece at the end of each strip acts as a stop against undue inward movement of the strip and also affords a means outside the book for effecting the release of the loose leaf posts.

5. A loose leaf book, comprising a metal back carrying hinge eyes, covers having metal housings secured to their inner edges which housings have hinge eyes formed in their inner edges, loose leaf posts having hinge eyes at their ends, and metal strips slidable within said housings and carrying alined pintles that operate within the hinge eyes in the inner edges of said housings, all

said hinge eyes being interengaged while the pintles are inserted through said eyes to form permanent hinged connections between said metal back and covers, and releasable hinge connections between the posts and covers, the hinged connections between the posts and covers capable of being released and re-established without disturbing the hinge connections between the back and covers.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature hereto.

JOHN SCHADE. 

